The Executive Director of the National Environmental Management Authority (NEMA), Akankwasah Barirega, has criticized landfilling as an outdated waste management practice unsuitable for the modern era. “Landfilling of waste in the 21st century is backwardness,” Barirega remarked during a press briefing on the occasion of UBF’s 8th anniversary in Kampala on Monday.
Barirega’s comments follow the recent collapse of Uganda’s largest landfill in Kiteezi, a tragic incident that has claimed 23 lives, with many still missing and extensive property damage. The rescue mission is ongoing. The 35-acre Kiteezi landfill, located 13 kilometers north of Kampala, has served as the primary waste disposal site for the greater Kampala metropolitan area since 1996.
With over 25,000 tons of waste deposited annually, environmental reports indicated that the landfill had reached its capacity by 2012 and required either closure or expansion—actions that were never taken. Barirega noted that the tragedy was foreseeable since Kiteezi had long been condemned as a landfill. However, due to the absence of an alternative, it continues to be used, a situation he believes could have been avoided.
According to Barirega, the core problem lies in the prevailing mindset of treating waste as useless and relying on landfilling. This mentality is widespread in cities across Uganda. He emphasized that waste can be transformed into valuable resources, citing examples such as producing organic manure, generating electricity (as done in Ethiopia), making briquettes for cooking to reduce deforestation, and generating biogas.
Barirega pointed out that much of what is currently considered waste is actually an untapped source of income. “In science, there is no waste. Matter is not created; it is only transformed from one state to another. Plastic can be recycled back into plastic, and wood can be recycled as well. As a country, we only need to support our cities and municipalities with equipment to facilitate proper waste sorting.”
As the leader of NEMA, Barirega emphasized that achieving the full potential of waste management requires proper sorting at the source, during transportation, and at collection centers. He sees waste as a resource for producing new items, adding that Uganda has the capacity to repurpose its waste. “We just need to ensure that we have waste streaming and sorting, and then we shall attract investment. This is an opportunity for Ugandans,” he stated.
In addition, Barirega announced that NEMA is finalizing regulations to enforce the Extended Producer Responsibility clause of the National Environment Management Act. “Under Extended Producer Responsibility, those who produce must account for the collection and reuse of their products from the environment. If you produce one million tons of plastics, you must account for that. If you cannot account for your plastics, heavy penalties will be levied,” he explained.
Despite these initiatives, city authorities currently lack a structured waste management system, making the transition from landfilling, as suggested by Barirega, unlikely in the near future. As an alternative to the Kiteezi landfill, the Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) is considering the establishment of a new landfill in Dduundu, Mukono.
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